An Auckland landlord who repeatedly tried to move into one of his properties during the coronavirus lockdown - despite it already being occupied by tenants - has been warned by police.
The morning of the alert level 4 COVID-19 lockdown, Mark Philip turned up at the doorstep of one of his properties in Mt Eden. He reportedly told his tenants he was moving into one of the rooms which had been vacated the day before.
The tenants called police and NZME reports Philip was escorted from the property in handcuffs.
However he tried his luck again later that day, this time dashing through the door when the tenants opened it. They again called the police, who took him away once more.
Police told Newshub Philip was in breach of lockdown conditions, and his actions have been noted in case there are further breaches.
"The requirements have been explained to him, and advice offered before he left the address," said a police spokesperson in a statement.
However Philip said he had nowhere else to go.
"There was an empty room and this is my house," he told NZME. "Where am I supposed to go? Whose bubble am I supposed to infect?"
Philip said he had lived at the property on and off for the past eight years, and considered it his permanent home.
There was no tenancy agreement in place. The property was a "boarding house" and the occupants were effectively his "flatmates".
"For the purposes of the lockdown I choose a place to live. They didn't want me there."
However property lawyer Joanna Pidgeon told NZME the TradeMe advertisement for the flat made it clear it was a flat - not a boarding house where the landlord also lived.
"The situation could have been averted if there had been clear written documentation and communication before the lockdown started," she said.
Philip is currently staying in a taxpayer funded hotel.
